WHAT links a pregnant Reese Witherspoon walking on water, DJ Johnny Vaughan jumping up and down on a bed in the middle of the street and a riot at a British embassy in Africa?


The unlikely answer is they're all scenes which have been filmed across Hounslow in recent years.


While the borough is famous for period dramas, like the 2004 big-screen adaptation of Vanity Fair, starring Ms Witherspoon and shot at Chiswick House, many of its more unusual TV and movie locations are less well-known.


The M4 fly-over through Boston Manor Park, for example, is the go-to spot for directors filming secret burials or murder scenes, while Brentford Towers provide an iconic backdrop for many a detective drama.


Mr Vaughan, meanwhile, donned his pyjamas to shoot a trailer for Capital FM in Chiswick cul-de-sac Upham Park Road, and the British embassy which featured in the opening scenes of Auf Wiedersehen Pet was actually the City of Westminster Sports Grounds, also in Chiswick.


The team at Reel Film Locations, who oversee filming across the borough from their base in Chiswick Town Hall, receive about 100 enquiries from film crews every month and help arrange 2-300 days of shooting a year.


Dennis Firminger and his colleagues help arrange parking, advise on the best time and place to film and ensure residents and traders aren't too put out.


As council contractors, their main aim is to bring money into the borough by encouraging as much shooting as possible.


Although direct payments to the council only total £50-100,000 a year, before costs, large crews tend to spend a lot of money wherever they go.


"A TV unit probably brings about £30-50,000 a day wherever they go, including salaries, and a film crew will bring many times that, so even the crumbs from the table are worth having," says Mr Firminger.


About 90 per cent of filming takes place away from the flight path in Brentford and Chiswick, because the noise makes it impossible to film elsewhere.


However, Hounslow is a popular location for Bollywood shoots, in which the sound is added later, and Myrtle Avenue, Feltham, has made a virtue of being close to the runways, with many documentary crews using the plane-spotters' haven to get an impressive shot of jets swooping overhead.


When it comes to filming, newer is not necessarily better, according to Mr Firminger.

Chiswick House, the scene of films including Vanity Fair, Hard Days Night and De-Lovely, has been less popular with directors since its major refurbishment was completed.


"We used to have a lot of large-scale filming there, but now the trust has spent all that money on restoration it's a bit precious. They don't want all these film crews tramping round their gardens," says Mr Firminger.


"Once the scaffolding comes off this building (Chiswick Town Hall) it will probably be a while before crews want to use it for external shots again because they want buildings to look old and decaying."


Feltham used to be a popular setting for movie videos, with directors drawn to the 'gritty and urban' town centre before regeneration took place a few years ago.


"So Solid Crew came to Feltham at the height of their fame. They daubed a big graffiti mural with the band's name on one of the buildings that was going to be pulled down.


"There was no publicity about the shoot but as soon as one girl saw the graffiti she texted her friends and suddenly we had about 300 young girls skipping school to be there.


"The film crew wanted it to look grotty and urban; since the regeneration, Feltham's a less attractive proposition for them."


The latest film to be shot in the borough is soon-to-be-released sci-fi thriller Never Let Me Go, based on Kazuo Ishiguro's Booker-shortlisted novel.


The upstairs rooms at Chiswick Town Hall were turned into an old-fashioned school jumble sale and a futuristic lab for the hotly-tipped movie, starring Keira Knightly and Carey Mulligan.

HOUNSLOW'S TOP LOCATIONS

The Butts, Brentford - this picturesque Victorian conservation area has provided the backdrop for films including Miss Potter, starring Renee Zellweger, and Johnny Depp's From Hell.

Chiswick High Road - for practical reasons the wide pavements make it a popular choice for everyone from documentary makers to the team behind BBC sketch show Harry and Paul.

Chiswick House and Gardens - as well as a setting for the films mentioned above, this has been a popular choice for TV dramas, with shows including New Tricks, Miss Marple and Kavanagh QC filmed here. It also doubled as Central Park in 2004 Cole Porter biopic De-Lovely.

Chiswick Town Hall - stood in for Peckham Town Hall in Only Fools & Horses prequel Rock and Chips, screened earlier this year. It was also the backdrop for a celebrity photo-shoot for Vogue's Christmas edition, and was transformed into Dorian Gray's studio for the recent film adaptation.

Gunnersbury Park - Keira Knightley attempts to crash a wedding reception here in Bend It Like Beckham. The park is also a popular setting for commercials, with the pond recently used to shoot a Jaws spoof for an anti-piracy trailer.

Duke's Meadows, Chiswick - popular with film-makers, especially the recently-restored paddling pool.

Boston Manor Park - the little-used area under the fly-over is where the teen stars of C4 comedy drama Misfits buried the body of their parole officer. It has been the setting for, among other things, Silent Witness, and a number of music videos.

Boston Manor House - another popular choice for period dramas, this stood in for Hastings in Foyle's War.

Hounslow High Street - popular with Bollywood directors despite the noise of planes overhead, this was also recently used as the setting for a KFC advert.

Brentford Towers - this iconic piece of 60s architecture provides the backdrop for many a gritty urban drama.

Griffin Park, Brentford - this old-fashioned ground stood in for Upton Park in 2005 film Green Street, about football hooligans. Leading man Elijah Wood enjoyed a pint at the Griffin pub, which is set on fire by marauding fans in the movie.

Hounslow Civic Centre - this unique setting is a popular choice for dramas involving political negotiations, like The Special Relationship, starring Michael Sheen as Tony Blair and Dennis Quaid as Bill Clinton.

Syon Park - The Madness of King George, Gosford Park and Daniel Deronda are among the historical dramas shot on the stunning privately-owned estate.